West Yorkshire Winter League – Queensbury reaches new heights

Queensbury runners form an orderly queue led by Ben Clare just after the start

Thirty-nine club members ran in the 3rd cross-country race in the West Yorkshire Winter League series on Sunday 31st January. In short we emerged as the overall winners on the day for the very first time in our history! There were many outstanding performances. Chris Williams, in his first race in the series, was 2nd overall to the regular winner of the men’s event (Ben Mounsey, Stainland). Tom Collinge has competed in every race so far and he managed his best performance taking 3rd place from Julian Hood (Skipton). New member, Alistair Galt, proved his ability crossing the line in 26th place. There then followed a remarkable sequence of finishers, including our top veteran runners: Andy Dovernor (32nd), Mick Coe (33), Martin Firth (36), Ben Clare (40), Peter Hughes (42). This ensured a fantastic first place in the men’s event on the day by 40 points over Baildon in 2nd place. A further 21 men completed the course. The women’s team finished 4th on the day with excellent performances by Anna Smith (13th), Jo Horan (16th albeit carrying an injury), Stacey Cleal (17th), Lynne Robinson (26th), Maria Rhodes (37th), Zoe Hipwell (48th), Julie Hepworth (54th), Rachel Kendall (65th), Dianne Simpson (78th) and Sharan Loughran (83rd). The combined efforts of the men and women meant that Queensbury was placed 1st overall on the day, a single point ahead of Stainland Lions in 2nd place and eight points ahead of Baildon Runners.

Chris Williams sprints for the line in 2nd place while Tom Collinge secures 3rd place in the background.

Queensbury was invited to join the West Yorkshire Winter League in the 2012-13 season. At the time the men formed a small but strong team and they finished the season in the 4th place. However, in our inaugural season there was no women’s team at all. It was not until the 2013-14 season when Anna and Jo started representing the club. By the end of the 2014-15 season the women, now joined by Stacey and Zoe, were placed 7th out of ten teams. This season, with one race to go, the women are 4th out of eleven teams in the same position as the men’s team. Given the competitive nature of the WYWL this is a remarkable leap forward for the club.

1st F50, Anna Smith, finishes strongly

The achievements at the club have drawn admiration from others throughout the season. The team spirit is exceptional and we celebrate every runner’s achievement. Thanks to those who put on an excellent race at Temple Newsam and to the WYWL organisers for their hard work. Thanks also to Graham Cecil Halstead for the excellent photos.

Some of the team before the race. Thanks to Bev Morritt for the photo.